As I relive my life in what I tell you. OK, my life and other people's as well. Why limit myself to getting into trouble just on discussion boards?

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

"I Survived a Japanese Game Show" - July 8, 2009 episode

Brent wasn't happy about having been chosen for the elimination game, but he was happy to have won and stayed in the game. He was ready to take on anyone else he had to compete against.

After the elimination round, the contestants had some relaxation time back at the house, where it seemed that bonds had been forming. Linda, Megan and Bobaloo had become very good friends, and Drew and Jamie had gotten quite close, with speculation running rampant about exactly *how close* they'd become.

The next day, it was back to the competition. A little Judge Bob fan club, known as the Bobbettes, had formed in the audience.

The first game was called "Snap Attack". One member from each team sat opposite a member from the other team, with a wall in between so that they couldn't see each other. Each had the ability to pull a rope that would cause a rubber band to snap at the opposing person. The team members are all lined up, sitting down, on either side of the wall, each in a different colored zone. Two hits won that particular zone, and the first team to win three zones won the game. Oh, and did I mention, the men were shirtless and the women had on the equivalent of jogging bras on top. Yep, lots of skin, especially in the stomach area, to be hit by the rubber band. There were ropes all across for them to pull, but they were randomly attached to the rubber bands on the other side, so you really couldn't aim - it was just the luck of what you picked and whether it would hit the other person.

Some of the rubber bands harmlessly snapped in the air, but others found their mark, and from the comments made by the contestants, they H.U.R.T. Ummm, yeah, I would think so. Crazy game.

Preparing to be snapped.

The Red Robots won the first two zones, and then the Green Tigers came back to win the third zone, but the Red Robots then pulled off their third zone win, fittingly because of Cathy, the displaced Green Tiger. The Red Robots win gave them an advantage in the following game.

The second game was called "Paint Splash Madness". Team members had what looked like a giant measuring cup strapped to their front. While standing on a spinning disc, they then pulled a lever that released paint to fill their cup. They then had to make their way to another team member who was sitting on another spinning disc, holding a jug, and they had to fling the contents of their cup into the jug. The team with the most paint in the jug in the allotted time won.

The advantage for the Red Robots from winning the first game was that their team would have an extra cup that they could fill.

The Green Tigers went first, and while Brent did a decent job, Megan really sucked. She fell down, dropped her cup and then missed when trying to get the paint into the jug. The Red Robots had their problems as well. Drew had the extra cup, but he had trouble filling up one cup, let alone two. They had a hard time staying upright and filling their cups, and even Cathy dropped her cup a few times. Both teams made the mistake of flinging the contents of their cup at the jug when the person was turning away from them, which meant they weren't reaching the jug but just splashing paint everywhere. They never seemed to figure out that didn't work.

The spinning player with the jug, waiting to be filled.

Getting paint in the cup is messy work.

Even messier when you're trying to fling the paint into the jug.

Being the jug holder is like being the canvas of an abstract painting.

In the end, here were the results:

Green Tigers - 0.68kgRed Robots - 1.12kg

The Red Robots won by quite a large margin, marking their second overall win in a row, which meant they not only got a reward but were also safe from elimination.

The Red Robots' reward was to experience race car driving, but not just regular race car driving, but the particular brand known as Tokyo Drift. They started off as simply passengers in the car while the professionals drove, and they had a great time. They were then offered the chance to drive, which Drew took them up on, even though he wasn't really given any instruction at all. They each also had a signed helmet they could keep.

Meanwhile, the Green Tigers also were around cars, but their punishment involved working at a Japanese gas station, which involved not just filling tanks but also cleaning cars, cleaning out the ashtray, cleaning the windows and even changing a tire, all without a translator. They had some pretty interesting customers too, from a Godfather/mob-type dude, to the convertible full of "Grease"/Elvis guys to a very particular owner of what looked like a massive roach coach almost.

After their punishment, it was time for the Green Tigers to go back to the studio for the elimination game. They had already made their decision about the participants the night before. Brent said that he didn't think he should be sent back to the elimination round since he'd done well in both challenges, and the others agreed. Megan tearfully said she didn't want to be in the elimination round either, but based on her performance, she had to volunteer. She was given the choice of choosing the other participant, so she had to choose between the two people she had bonded with. She picked Bobaloo because she thought she'd have a better chance of winning against him.

The name of the elimination game was "Alien Took My Teddy Bear". And for the record, they weren't teddy bears - they were panda bears. Different. Each of the contestants had to take a giant stuffed panda, go up one conveyor belt, make their way through another section with three spinning discs, and then another conveyor belt before depositing the bear in a bin. Whoever delivered the most bears in the allotted time won the game.

Bobaloo was picked to go first. He didn't have much trouble to begin with and delivered one bear without too much trouble. But he wasn't so lucky on subsequent attempts. He fell three times, each time being deposited into a bin of flour, and that meant he had to start all over again. The game really took its toll on him, and he only ended up with the one bear.

Then it was Megan's turn. She fell on her first try and had some difficulty but finally managed to deliver her first bear. On her second try, she fell in the spinning discs section, but she was trapped in between two of them, so she never fell in the flour. She finally managed to get her footing again, and she delivered her second bear with only seconds to spare, winning the game.

Megan was happy at her win but sorry to see Bobaloo go. He took the defeat very well and was happy to have been able to participate in the show. I had wondered how the Sayonara Mob was going to handle carrying out Bobaloo, and I did notice that one of the bulkier guys was given the task of carrying Bobaloo's mid-section while some of the other guys had his arms and legs.

I didn't really have a feeling about Bobaloo one way or the other, but he went out well, so good job.

Bob "Bobaloo" KoenigBob "Bobaloo" Koenig is a loud, large, loveable guy with true Midwest values. Growing up in Milwaukee, Bobaloo was always the funny athletic kid who loved sports and traditional Midwestern food. With a healthy diet of beer and cheese, he was the chubby kid everyone loved to be around. Not much has changed for Bobaloo since his childhood days -- he's still the funny, high-energy guy from the Midwest everyone wants on their team.Age: 35Hometown: Los Angeles, CAOccupation: House Cleaner

More Japanese madness next week, and it looks like things are heating up between Drew and Jamie. What is this - Big Brother or Survivor?